Pages

Muscle Injuries – All About Muscle Injuries

Posted By:
David Mangusan Jr., PTRP

Muscle injuries are common sports injuries. A severe muscle injury can keep you from participating in the sport that you love or even doing simple tasks. Common muscle injuries are muscle contusions, strains and tendonitis.

Your skeletal muscles – muscles that make it possible for you to move – attach to your bones through strong connective tissues called tendons. Often, your tendons are found near your joints and are usually named according to the specific name of the muscle. For example, the quadriceps tendon gets its name from the muscle located in front of your thigh, the quadriceps femoris.

Common Types of Muscle Injuries

There are different names for muscle injuries. However, they can be generally named as contusions, strains, or tendonitis.

Contusions

Muscle contusions are one of the most common muscle injuries experienced by athletes, especially those participating in contact sports. Muscle contusion is also called muscle bruises. Although quite common, most cases of contusions heal quickly even without special medical treatment.

Muscle contusions are often caused by a direct trauma or repeated blow to the muscle. In some cases, the condition can be caused by falling on a hard surface.

Symptoms may include pain at the site of injury. Severe muscle contusions may cause swelling and other underlying tissues may be damaged, as well.

Muscle strains occur when the muscle is overstretched or pulled, with or without tearing of the muscle. It can be caused by a sudden or forceful contraction of the muscle such as lifting a heavy weight or repetitive movements (overuse injury).

Depending on the severity of muscle strain, symptoms may include pain, swelling and, sometimes, bruising.

Tendonitis is the inflammation of the tendon – strong fibrous connective tissue connecting a muscle to a bone. Sometimes, tendonitis may also be accompanied by a muscle strain. Tendonitis occurs when the tendon is irritated and inflamed. The condition can be caused by a sudden pull on the tendon and overuse or repetitive movements.

Symptoms may include pain, swelling, tenderness, and swelling

Treatments for Muscle Injuries

Minor muscle injuries may be treated with simple home remedies, such as rest, applying ice, using compression bandage, and elevating your injured limb. Taking anti-inflammatory medication may also help. Physiotherapy may also be able to help you manage your symptoms.

Severe muscle injuries need to be checked by a qualified health care provider. A torn muscle or tendon may need to be surgically repaired.

What you can do

Most minor muscle injuries can be effectively treated with RICE therapy. RICE stands for rest, ice, compression, and elevation. Taking anti-inflammatory medication, such as acetaminophen or ibuprofen may help with your pain and swelling. If you are unsure of what medication you can take, don’t hesitate to ask your doctor.

Physiotherapy is an allied health profession that deals with the evaluation and treatment of musculoskeletal conditions, including muscle injuries. Whether you’ve undergone surgery for your injury or not, physiotherapy may be able to help you with your symptoms and other related problems. In addition, your physiotherapist will guide you throughout your rehab to ensure that you will be able to return to your original activity or achieve your highest function, as fast and safely possible.

Expect that you will be actively participating in your treatment, such as performing your physiotherapist’s recommended exercises to achieve your goals.

After your surgery for your injured muscle, your doctor may recommend that you undergo physiotherapy rehabilitation. Treatments included in your rehab program will depend on your specific problems and your goals.

Performing exercises is an important part of your physiotherapy rehabilitation. How soon you can return to your usual activities depends on the extent of your injury and how motivated you are in actively participating in your rehab.

Disclaimer: The information obtained on Physiotherapy Notes - PT Notes is not intended as a substitute for professional help or advice but is to be used only as an aid in understanding physiotherapy, physical therapy treatments and what you might expect from a physiotherapy rehab program. A qualified healthcare provider should always be consulted for any health problem prior to self-treatment.
This website provides links to other organizations and websites as a service to our readers and is not responsible for the information, services, or products provided by these web sites, health professionals, or companies.Disclosure: Advertisements and Affiliate links are included on our site. These ADs, Sponsors and Affiliates are clearly stated as such and ,thereby, we may receive earnings from those ADs and Affiliates if you decided to follow those links, and in some cases buy from them. We, at Physiotherapynotes.com, assure you that advertisements presented on our website does not, in any way, affect or influence editorial physiotherapy articles presented here. Thank you for trusting us.